Chapter 9
A year later, I stood on the porch of my new house.
It was smaller than the one I had shared with Grant. Warmer. Brighter. Mine.
Lila was playing on a blanket in the garden, laughing at the butterflies. Reed was sitting beside her, watching her like she was the most precious thing in the world.
He had become part of our lives. More family than Grant ever was.
I watched them and smiled.
I had lost a husband. But I had gained a brother. And I had gained myself.
I thought about that Sunday lunch. The cold water. The humiliation. The drive away.
I had thought my life was ending that day.
I had no idea it was just beginning.
Grant had tried to destroy me. Dorothea had tried to erase me. Sloan had tried to take my place.
Instead, they had set me free.
Free from their judgment. Free from their cruelty. Free from the endless struggle to be good enough for people who would never, ever be satisfied.
I picked Lila up. She wrapped her little arms around my neck.
“Mama,” she said.
“Yes, my love,” I whispered.
She was loved. She was safe. She was everything I had ever wanted.
And I was finally, truly happy.
They had poured water over me to put me in my place. But they had forgotten one thing:
Fire cannot be drowned by what is cold. It only burns brighter.
May you like
And I was burning brighter than ever.
The end.
